I swore by e-ink readers until I dug out my 2004 Palm PDA, now I'm torn

For years I told everyone e-ink was the only way to read without eye strain. Last month I found my old Palm Tungsten T3 in a drawer with a half-dead battery. Charged it up, loaded a plain text novel, and honestly the grayscale screen felt fine after 20 minutes. Now I'm questioning if I really need a $150 e-reader when this 20 year old gadget does the same job. The battery only lasts about 4 hours on a charge, but I just sit on the couch with a cable nearby. Is there a real advantage to e-ink for long reading sessions, or are we all just paying for looks and backlights? Has anyone else gone back to a PDA or old Pocket PC for reading and felt weirdly okay with it?

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jenniferh8313d ago

Old Palm devices are great for one thing, reading in the dark with a book light on the side. I used a Handspring Visor for a couple years back in the day and the battery life was trash, but I just kept a charger by my bed. The trick for me was sticking to plain text files and turning the brightness down, that saved a ton of power. E-ink wins on long trips or when you forget a cable, but for couch reading, a PDA honestly does the job.

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